Special Event:2009 Year in Review
2009 – Arctic ice is melting faster than ever before. Amid many other crises – food, energy, recession and pandemic flu – United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged the world to take on these challenges together.

Special Event: Panel discussion organized by the Permanent Missions to the United Nations of
Argentina, Brazil, Croatia, France, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden on the occasion of the International Day of Human Rights.
Theme: “Opposing grave Human Rights Violations on the basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity” [Panellists]
[ Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 25 minutes ]
[ Webcast: Archived Video- Spanish: 1 hour and 25 minutes ]

10 December 09

Special Event: Panel discussion organized by the New York Office of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on the occasion of the International Day of Human Rights.
Theme: "Race, Poverty and Power": The impact of racial discrimination on development.

Special Event: On the occasion of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. (Organized by the Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), in collaboration with the World Bank).

Special Event :Women’s International Forum. Briefing by the Secretary-General on “Opportunities and obligations: Climate change, the Millennium Development Goals and the need for a renewed multilateralism”

Special Event: The Twelfth Rafael M. Salas Memorial Lecture will be delivered by the Honourable Mr.Yasuo Fakudo former Prime Minister of Japan on “Challenges for sustainable development in a new era: Population, climate change and global security” (organized by the United Nations Population Fund).

Special Event : Commemorative event on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (organized by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and civil society partners).

Special Event : Remarks by the Secretary-General at a Panel discussion on “Industrialization strategies and policies: A key to economic transformation of Africa”(on the occasion of Africa Industrialization Day) (organized by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

Special Event : 2009 Parliamentary Hearing on "The way forward - Building political support and implementing effective responses to the gloal economic crisis." (Co-organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Office of the President of the General Assembly.).

DPI/NGO: Briefing on "Healing wounds, reclaiming lost lives: The consequences of female genital mutilation" (in observance of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women).
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour 54 minutes ]

Special Event: The Secretary-General invited all staff to join him at a townhall meeting on staff security. He provided an update on developments related to the tragic events of 28 October in Kabul, Afghanistan, that took the lives of five United Nations staff and injured many others.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 22 minutes ]

Special Event: The Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), in partnership with the World Food Programme are organizing a special event on “The Impact of the Economic and Food Crisis on Post-Conflict Countries.

Special Event: "Giving voice to the victims and survivors of human trafficking" [Event hosted by the High Commissioner for Human Rights and organized by the New York Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights].
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 22 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 22 minutes ]

Special Event: Third Committee:
Introductory statements by special procedure mandate-holders, Chairpersons of human rights treaty bodies or Chairpersons of Working Groups who will be presenting reports to the Third Committee:
1. Tomas Ojea Quintana, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar
2. Vitit Muntarbhorn, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea
3. Richard Falk, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 49 minutes ]

Special Event: Launch of the joint Council of Europe/United Nations study on trafficking in organs, tissues and cells and trafficking in human beings for the purpose of the removal of organs (co-organized by the Council of Europe and the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women (OSAGI), Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and co-sponsored by the Permanent Missions of Slovenia and Spain)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 34 minutes ] (The first hour of the meeting was not by UNTV)

Special Event: Student commemoration of the International Day of Peace. Theme: Disarm Now For a Better World. Remarks by the Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, the President of the 64th General Assembly, Dr. Ali Abdussalam Treki and United Nations Messenger of Peace, Jane Goodall, UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs, Mr. Sergio Duarte, and Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Coomaraswamy.

Special Event: The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), in partnership with the UN Bookshop, will organize a panel discussion on the book "Half the sky: Turning oppression into opportunity for women worldwide". The focus of the panel discussion will be human trafficking and other issues affecting women that are featured in the book by Mr. Kristof and Ms. WuDunn. Antonio Maria Costa, the Executive Director of UNODC, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will deliver the opening remarks.

Special Event: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon convene a discussion of the book of the United Nations Intellectual History Project “UN Ideas that Changed the World”. The discussion moderated by Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Special Event: Launching of the book entitled "United Nations International Civil Service: Perceptions and Realities" jointly co-authored by H.E. Mr. Murari R. Sharma (former PR, Nepal) and Dr. Ajit Banerjee (former Special Adviser and Principal Coordinator for Administrative Reform and Governance Programme in the United Nations). Remarks by the Secretary-General of United Nations, H.E. Mr. Ban Ki-moon.

Special Event: Round table under the overall theme "Examining and overcoming the deepening
world financial and economic crisis and its impact on development"Round Table 4 - Contributions of the United Nations development system in response to the crisis. (Website)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 52 minutes ]

25 June 09

Special Event: Round table under the overall theme "Examining and overcoming the deepening
world financial and economic crisis and its impact on development"Round Table 3 - Present and future impacts of the crisis on, inter alia, employment, trade, investment and development goals and the Millennium Development Goals. (Website)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 3 hours and 4 minutes ]

25 June 09

Special Event: Round table under the overall theme "Examining and overcoming the deepening
world financial and economic crisis and its impact on development"Round Table 2 - Coordinated and collaborative actions and appropriate measures to mitigate the impact of the crisis on development. (Website)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 46 minutes ]

24 June 09

Special Event: Round table under the overall theme "Examining and overcoming the deepening
world financial and economic crisis and its impact on development"Round Table 1 - The role of the United Nations and its Member States in the ongoing international discussions on reforming and strengthening the international financial and economic system and architecture. (Website)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 3 hours and 13 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 3 hours and 13 minutes ]

Special Event: International student video conference in observance of UN World Environment Day with interactive dialogue on climate change among students from Bangladesh, Kenya, Panama, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 40 minutes ]

1 June 09

Special Event: 2009 UN Population Award Ceremony. The Secretary-General will present the Population Award to the laureates.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 50 minutes ]

Special Event: International Day of U.N. Peacekeepers -Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy will award medals at Headquarters to the military and police officers currently serving in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 26 minutes ]

29 May 09

Special Event: International Day of U.N. Peacekeepers - Dag Hammarskjöld Medals will be awarded posthumously to the military, police and civilian personnel who lost their lives last year serving in United Nations peacekeeping operations. The medals will be received by representatives of the respective Permanent Missions to be forwarded on to the next of kin.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 38 minutes ]

Special Event: International Day of U.N. Peacekeepers - Solemn wreath-laying ceremony at in honour of the 132 peacekeeping personnel, 10 of them women, who lost their lives whether through attacks, illnesses or accidents in 2008 in the service of peace.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 9 minutes ]

Special Event: Launch of the Trust Fund and Goodwill Ambassador Ceremony for the Permanent Memorial to honour the memory of the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade (A/RES/63/5). Appointement of Mr. Simmons as UN Goodwill Ambassador for the Permanent Memorial.
[Webcast: Archived Video- 54 minutes ]

Special Event: Side event during the 17th session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development on the theme of "Gender and food security".
Participants: Cheryl Morden from International Fund for Agricultural Development, Martha Hirpa from Heifer International and Linda Nghatsane, a farmer from South Africa.
The event is organized by Women Organizing for Change in Agriculture and Natural Resource Management (WOCAN) in Partnership with Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).
[Webcast: Archived Video- 1 hour and 28 minutes ]

7 May 09

Special Event: Co-sponsored by the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs and the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs.
Presentations by: U.N. High Representative Sergio Duarte, U.N. Messenger of Peace Michael Douglas, Former Under-Secretary General Nobuyasu Abe, Former Under-Secretary General Jayantha Dhanapala and Chaired by GSI President Jonathan Granoff.
[Webcast: Archived Video- 1 hour and 35 minutes ]

Special Event: Powhiri (traditional Maori ceremony) to welcome UNDP Administrator Helen Clark.
The powhiri is the traditional Maori ceremony which takes place when manuhiri (visitors) and tangata whenua (people of the land) meet. The ceremony is a dynamic part of public life in New Zealand today. In this case, the ceremony will provide the framework for the "delivery" of Helen Clark by New Zealand Maori leaders to UNDP. New Zealand's Maori leaders have travelled to New York to support Helen Clark in their personal capacity to carry out this powhiri.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 54 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 54 minutes ]

27 April 09

Special Event: Special High-level Meeting of the Economic and Social Council with the Bretton Woods Institutions, the World Trade Organization and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
[Website]

Special Event: Event on the theme "The tsunami global lessons learned", to present the report entitled "The tsunami legacy: Innovation, breakthroughs and change", co-chaired by the newly appointed Administrator of UNDP, in her capacity as Head of UNDG, and the Permanent Representative of Indonesia.

Special Event: NGO Briefing on "Towards the End of the Decade to Roll Back Malaria in Developing Countries" in observance of World Malaria Day 2009.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 6 minutes ]

DPI/NGO: Briefing: "Human Rights and Autism". The event will feature the screening of two UNTV-produced documentaries on the Autism condition. A panel of speakers will include specialists on mental disability rights, member states and representatives from civil society and academia.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 28 minutes ]

26 March 09

Special Event: Panel discussion entitled “Left in the Dark: The Unmet Need for Communication in Humanitarian Response”, on the information needs of affected populations. Panelists at this event include senior representatives of OCHA, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the BBC World Service Trust, Internews and the Thomson Reuters.
[Webcast: Archived Video- 1 hour and 54 minutes ]

Special Event: Breaking the Silence, Beating the Drum concert and cultural event will form the centerpiece of the commemoration with a chorus of celebrities and dignitaries representing the global community collectively celebrating the resilience of the human spirit and victory over adversity [organized by the UN DPI Outreach Division].
[Webcast: Archived Video- 4 minutes ] (Musical Extract)

Special Event: UN Public Information Department, Sci Fi Channel to co-host a panel with Battlestar Galactica creators to raise profile of humanitarian concern. The discussion will explore some of the themes that are of importance to both the United Nations and the critically acclaimed television show: human rights; terrorism; children and armed conflict; and reconciliation and dialogue among civilizations and faiths.
The panel will be moderated by Academy Award-winning actress and producer Whoopi Goldberg. Oscar-nominated actress Mary McDonnell, Emmy Award-winning and Oscar-nominated actor Edward James Olmos, and Battlestar Galactica creators and executive producers Ronald D. Moore and David Eick will participate in the panel.
[Webcast: Archived Video- 2 hours and 4 minutes ]

Children and Armed Conflict- Battlestar Galactica video clip and discussion with Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict.
[Webcast: Archived Video- 30 minutes ]

Special Event: United Nations University (UNU) will hold a Midday Forum on the theme “Blue "Helmettes": The Role of Women in UN Peacekeeping”.
[Website]
[Webcast: Archived Video- 1 hour and 14 minutes ]

5 March 09

Special Event: Panel discussion on “Afghan women speak: Eight years later, challenges and hopes” (organized by the United
Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the United States Mission and the Permanent Mission of Afghanistan).
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 33 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 1 hour and 33 minutes ]

Special Event: Side-Event at the 53rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women - “The Climate Change Negotiations — an Action Agenda”.
Sponsored by the International Alliance of Women and the Global Gender and Climate Alliance (GGCA- members include the UNDP, UNEP, IUCN, Women’s Environment and Development Organization and more than 20 UN agencies and civil society organizations), the Heinrich Boell Foundation, the Center for Asia-Pacific Women in Politics and the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the UN. [Programme] (pdf)
[Webcast: Archived Video- 1 hour and 35 minutes ]

3 March 09

Special Event: 53rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women [Website] - Panel of experts: presentations and dialogue.
Follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women and to the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly entitled “Women 2000: gender equality, development and peace for the twenty-first century”: implementation of strategic objectives and
action in critical areas of concern and further actions and initiatives: the equal sharing
of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of
HIV/AIDS.
(E/CN.6/2009/2, E/CN.6/2009/3 and E/CN.6/2009/12)
Morning Meeting:
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 56 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 2 hours and 56 minutes ]Afternoon Meeting:
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 53 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 2 hours and 53 minutes ]

Special Event: United Nations University (UNU) Lectures Series Emerging Thinking on Global Issues: "Explaining the Financial Crisis and What It Mean for the Future of Global Development", by Professor Joseph E. Stiglitz of Columbia University and 2001 Nobel Laureate in Economics.
[Website]
[Webcast: Archived Video- 1 hour and 29 minutes ]

23 February 09

Special Event: The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) will convene a special Preparatory meeting for the 2009 High-level Segment on the theme of Philanthropy and Global Public Health. The meeting discuss and explore collaborative opportunities in advancing progress in maternal and girls' health and neglected tropical diseases. The aim is to share best practice and lessons learned and to build new innovative partnerships and alliances to address neglected and other diseases of the poor. Representatives of corporate and partnerships communities will announce major contributions in the child health and neglected tropical diseases. Remarks by the UN Secretary-General.
[Programme][Website]
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 3 hours and 13 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 3 hours and 13 minutes ]

Special Event: Panel discussion on "Exposing denial and benign neglect" (on the occasion of the launch of the UNODC global report on trafficking in persons) and Goodwill Ambassador appointment ceremony. [organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), as part of the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking (UN.GIFT)].
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 4 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 2 hours and 4 minutes ]

12 February 09

Special Event: The 5th Annual United Nations' Web4Dev conference - Innovation for Access

Special Event: First Meeting of the 2009 session of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 42 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 42 minutes ]

Special Event: "Full of promise: how the United Nations monitoring and reporting mechanism can better protect children". (Organized by Save the Children and co-sponsored by the Permanent Missions of France and the United Kingdom)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 19 minutes ]

9 February 09

Special Event: Opening of the Fifth General Meeting between CARICOM and the United Nations system.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 25 minutes ]

DPI/NGO: NGO Briefing on "The Sephardic Jews in Greece: The Untold Story" in Observance of the International Day of
Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust (27 January).
[Programme][Website]
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 2 hours and 35 minutes ]

27 January 09

Special Event: On the occasion of the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust a Memorial ceremony.(Website)
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 52 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 1 hour and 52 minutes ]

Special Event: Group of 77 (ceremonial meeting to mark the formal handover of the chairmanship of the Group of 77 from
Antigua and Barbuda to the Republic of the Sudan).
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 3 hours and 5 minutes ]
[Webcast: Archived Video- Original Language: 3 hours and 5 minutes ]

Special Event: The first in the series of Briefings: "May I Ask a Question Mr. President" focussing on the work of the 63rd General Assembly and its priorities of importance to the DPI/NGO community.
[Webcast: Archived Video- English: 1 hour and 55 minutes ]